Sanguis
by respite2
Summary: There's a demon in Kirishima Eijirou's new house. Its presence fills his bedroom with the persistent smell of blood. It's several days until help arrives in the form of exorcist and magic user, Bakugou Katsuki. A short one-shot written for KiriBaku Challenges Prompt 5: Blood


The sun was setting by the time Eijirou finished placing the last piece of furniture into his new home. The previous owner had thrown in a ton of solid wood pieces for free, so there wasn't much to bring in. The delivery men had taken a while with the new washer and dryer set. He stuck them in the living room, expecting to move them tomorrow morning. Unpacking would resume tomorrow. Preparation of the most practical rooms had filled most of the day. Special attention had fallen on the bedroom. He looked forward to fresh, clean sheets after a long day. Hungry, he took an apple from the kitchen before heading for his new bedroom. He was ready to grab a set of clean clothes and shower.

He was thinking about cooking up something simple for dinner when the smell hit him.

The bedroom door was hardly opened a crack, the smell having stopped him mid act. The thick metallic smell was so strong it sent him running, gagging out onto the porch. It stuck in his sinuses, causing his stomach to churn despite sitting out in the open for half an hour. When it was clear that no other option was available, he readied himself to re-enter the house. Even with his shirt wrapped around his face, the heavy iron scent of blood still made its way through. It forced him to hold his breath until he managed to slam the door shut. He expected the odor to spread to the rest of the house, but to his relief as soon as he shut the door the smell disappeared.

His first thought was that some animals had gotten in somehow. Maybe leaving behind the gruesome aftermath of a fight or predatory kill. Possibly many animals. He imagined only buckets worth of blood and gore could produce such a potent aroma. He wanted to confirm, but couldn't bring himself to check. The smell was beyond overwhelming. Eijirou figured it best to call someone before the blood and everything else that came with it began to rot. He couldn't imagine the smell getting worse, but putrefaction could prove him wrong. The situation called for a professional.

The first person he called was a guy from animal control. Eijirou had been afraid that whatever had killed or dragged in the bloody mess might still be there. The area was rural, his closest neighbors were semi-wild animals. He expected someone who worked at out of the way places like his more than likely knew what to expect. Still, he warned the man ahead of time, explaining that the smell had kept him from even entering the room. The man seemed to understand, explaining that few people could stomach his line of work. When Eijirou unlocked the door the man practically popped out of his jumpsuit. Neither had the chance to look far into the room before the smell forced Eijirou to slam the door shut again. Heaving into the rose bushes, the man told Eijirou to call the police department.

The second person Eijirou called for was a local police officer. He caught her attention as she drove past his field. Much to her credit, the rookie was able to hold it together even after catching a whiff. But things didnn't go so smoothly for him. She knew the smell of a body, she said, keeping her eyes fixed right on Eijirou as they waited for her partner to show up.

Her partner was an older man with a gray head of hair and matching mustache. The first officer kept Eijirou out in the hallway. She made comments about bodies and arrests while her partner went into the bedroom. He was sweating bullets the entire time, not because he'd done anything, but at the thought of what might be found. They waited and waited, but her partner didn't come out. Or at least Eijirou never saw him come out. Neither had the rookie. Face covered with a handkerchief, she went in after him, and never returned.

He attempted to go in himself, but the smell had gotten worse. He could hardly turn the knob and nudge the door before he'd start dry heaving. That night he stayed slumped up against the door, too queasy to move. The next day, no one came calling from the police department. And both officers' cars were gone.

The third person Eijirou called for was Katsuki Bakugou, almost two weeks later. On the twelfth day since discovering the smell Eijirou woke up knowing he needed to call this man. He already knew the number by heart. It played on a loop in his head like an infectious commercial jingle. He wondered if he'd picked up from an ad somewhere, but couldn't place it. He had the number, but not much of an idea on what service Katsuki Bakugou provided. Nearly two weeks with no follow up from the police department, he started to question if any of it had actually happened. Under no circumstances had he opened the bedroom door since the incident. The guilt and paranoia drove him to call.

The phone rung thrice before a cheery voice answered on the other end. The operator asked his name and location. Hesitant, he gave out the previous owner's name before sharing the address.

"And what exactly is the problem, Mr. Sato?"

"Eh, well, there's a smell."

"A smell?"

"Uh, yeah. Like blood. Just this disgusting blood smell that won't go away. And people...they disappeared...the police-"

The operator stopped him.

"That does sound serious Mr. Sato. Most likely a blood demon. We will send one of our highest ranked exorcists tonight. Expect him sometime after midnight."

The phone went dead, leaving Eijirou standing there, flabbergasted.

* * *

That night a knock came to the door, a little after midnight, as expected. Eijirou considered pretending he wasn't home until a man's angry voice began yelling at him.

"Open the goddamn door! It's freezing."

He felt guilty for leaving his visitor outside, and opened the door for him. Standing at the doorway was a rather grumpy looking man. He gave Eijirou the once-over, appearing rather unimpressed.

"Bakugou Katsuki." He didn't bow.

Eijirou kept himself half hidden behind the front door. He brushed some of his hair out of his face, feeling rather uncertain.

"Uh, pleased to meet you."

Bakugou quirked an eyebrow, but didn't ask his name. He guessed the operator had informed Bakugou before he came.

Eijirou couldn't help but stare. The man seemed familiar, but like the jingle, he couldn't place it. There really must have been some kind of ad on late night TV or something, he thought. Maybe it played alongside the psychic hotline commercials. Bakugou was handsome enough to be in commercials.

The exorcist grunted, breaking his train of thought.

"Huh?"

"Aren't you going to invite me in?"

Eijirou apologized, fumbling his words. Bakugou waited impatiently until he was given an invitation to enter. Once asked he rudely shoved Eijirou aside. He quickly removed his shoes, visibly eager to look further inside. He examined Eijirou's home, taking in his surroundings with an attentive eye.

"Why all the mirrors?," he demanded, looking suspiciously at Eijirou.

"I rigged them so I could keep a watch on the door."

Bakugou acknowledged his reply with a grunt. He made his way towards the bedroom, avoiding the mirrors. It made Eijirou nervous, he knew this made him look a little crazy.

"How did you know it was in this room?," he asked, his curiosity winning over his discomfort.

"The smell."

"Oh...I guess I must've gotten used to it."

Whatever was in his room was most likely rotting its way through the wood by now. At least he figured it was. He honestly couldn't smell a thing with the door closed. If the smell was spreading into the house overtime he'd probably grown immune. No one had mentioned a smell on him, though. Then again he had been keeping to himself.

At the door he watched Bakugou study both ends of the hallway. Eijirou could tell he was counting the mirrors. There were quite a lot concentrated there. Nailed and taped to the walls. Suspended with ropes or heaps of twine. Bakugou didn't mention them, much to his relief.

"Stay out of my way."

Eijirou did his best to comply, shrinking back into a corner, but he was determined to stay and watch. Bakugou pressed his palm against the door. A flash of fire erupted from his hand making Eijirou jump from surprise. After a long minute of silence Bakugou removed his hand, half growling a string of curses. Eijirou shifted in place, wondering what was supposed to happen.

"You let it out," accused Bakugou.

"I didn't! Nothing's come out of there. Not even by accident. I sleep at the end of the hallway. I would have seen it."

"Ugh, shut up already. You're probably too chickenshit to do anything anyway."

Bakugou faced the door again.

"I'll have to open it."

Eijirou gagged at the thought earning himself a rather condescending look of disgust.

"You can leave. I don't need to see you puking your guts out while I work."

Part of him did want to turn around. To go straight out the front door, but something else kept his feet planted on the hallway floor. He needed to see inside. He needed to know.

"I'll stay out of your way. Just let me see."

"Whatever."

Bakugou didn't give him a chance to prepare, kicking the door wide open at once. The stench hit Eijirou like a ten foot wave. He could taste the tangy metallic odor in the back of his throat. It was overwhelming, but it didn't smell of decay at all. The blood still smelled fresh.

"Fucking hell."

Bakugou stood at the entrance, eyes darting from one spot to the other.

Nothing in his expression or body language gave anything away. So Eijirou took a few cautious steps towards the doorway.

There was nothing there. It looked the same as he'd left it before the smell appeared. The furniture wasn't even dusty. Maybe the smell was the result of some weird gas leak, he thought. He pulled his sweater over his face, and attempted to lean a little closer under Bakugou's arm. He miss stepped, tripping on the other man's foot. They both fell forward into the room. Bakugou caught himself, but Eijirou crashed on the floor, hitting his nose on the hardwood. He felt the trickle of blood pouring out when he sat up. Despite the nosebleed he could tell the overbearing smell from before had left.

He turned to look at Bakugou, who was shouting, but he didn't catch any of what he was saying. The lights had gone out, and there was something moving outside the door. He could hear tapping and scratching noises, like dog's paws, as if a pack of dogs were coming together in the hallway.

"You tricked me."

Bakugou's voice, loud and furious, refocused his attention. Eijirou clumsily tried to stop the nosebleed with his sleeve.

"Huh?"

Tiny bursts of fire were exploding on the palms of Bakugou's hands. They filled the room with a growing crackling sound and flashes of light. As the fire around his palms grew Eijirou feared he was about to become kindling. He scrambled backwards on the floor hitting the wall.

"You think you can trick me and get away with it?," Bakugou roared.

His back pressed against the wall Eijirou looked up at him, body stiff with fear. He desperately tried to understand what Bakugou meant, but his mind was blank.

"I don't know what's happening," he said, hoping the man believed him.

A ball of fire landed at Eijirou's feet. He stomped at the flames, and noticed dark stains on his pant legs. They were spreading, up and down his legs, arms, torso. Droplets of blood, his blood, fell to the floor.

Bakugou took a step towards him, a wild grin on his face.

"Die, demon."

Eijirou rolled to the side, barely avoiding a flaming punch. Bakugou slid on the blood, giving him the chance to bolt for the door. Before he took a single step out, he stopped at the sight of dozens of eyes. They seemed float in the pitch darkness of the hallway. When all at once the eyes turned to look at him, he stepped back, and slipped on the blood himself. He tried to get up, but Bakugou had recovered, and pinned him to the floor. From the corner of his eye, he could see more and more sets of eyes appearing at various points in the dark. Eijirou knew they were coming from the mirrors.

"I don't understand."

Bakugou wasn't sympathetic. He got up and placed his knee on Eijirou's chest. A circle of flames appeared, hovering over them, providing a source of light. Blood had gotten all over his hands and clothing, he had some trouble pulling something out of his pocket. A small glass vile full of a clear liquid.

"I'm going to exorcise you. Get it?"

He didn't know why, but he knew that liquid shouldn't touch him. On instinct he lunged at Bakugou, and knocked the vile out of his hands. It shattered on the floor. The liquid evaporated.

He looked down at his hands, they looked like claws carved out of a black stone. As for Bakugou, he couldn't see it well, but he could smell the fresh cut on his hand. And he smelled the blood drip down, mixed in with his own on the floor.

Finally, everything came back to him. Blood magic, blood pacts, were an old, old magic. They had been drawn together again under its powerful influence. His familiars, the black hounds, had set the ritual for him. They had led the cops away, protecting the ceremonial site until it was time. Just as Katsuki had planned. Unable to contain his joy, he tackled Bakugou unto the floor.

"Katsuki, I found you."

Bakugou struggled, but couldn't match his strength. When he didn't use his magic to attack either, Eijirou took it as a sign.

"Katsuki, do you remember now? It's me."

He was holding Bakugou's face in his hands, grinning. The man stared at him, wide-eyed, confused. He grabbed at Eijirou's hands, trying to pull them off, managing to mix their blood further.

Soon he stopped. It had come back to him.

"Ei?"

He laughed. The familiar nickname filled his chest with a warm feeling. He kissed Katuski, the first in the many years.

They were together again.


End file.
